


A Flash in Lavender

by thisismybrainrain



Series: centuries of brooding and blood [4]
Category: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Carmilla (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Brotp, F/F, F/M, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-01
Updated: 2015-11-01
Packaged: 2018-04-29 11:56:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,401
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5126672
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thisismybrainrain/pseuds/thisismybrainrain
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Buffy and Laura meet. Buffy has a present for Laura and Carm smells a memory.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Flash in Lavender

**Author's Note:**

  * For [skeletonannie](https://archiveofourown.org/users/skeletonannie/gifts).



> come find me on tumblr thisismybrainrain
> 
> Thank you to Cole for the inspiration as always when it comes to BTVS x Carmilla things.

She rolled over and glanced at the alarm clock. The numbers blinked red back at her: 8:00AM. 

Far too early for a Monday. 

Laura had the week off for reading week. She was doing a Masters in print media at the local university. 

The winter sun was keening into the room and Carmilla squinted against it. Mornings were never her thing even in the before - which at the best of times was hazy and only remembered in dreams. 

She could still smell her mother’s perfume. Lavender roots. Happy memories.

Laura sighed in bed next to her. Carmilla smiled. It was odd. They were both still getting used to this easy calm. This was probably the most quiet life had ever been. 

With Giles and the other drips and drabs of the council that were still around looking out for them all and with Spike and Buffy and the scoobies coming over 4-5 times a year. Life wasn’t too shabby. 

The flashes that Laura got were harsher in the winter. They’d bought fairy lights like the ones she’d had in her childhood bedroom. They consisted of mini tardises and though Carmilla had grumbled about them at the time, all in all they helped her too. 

Deep down of course, Laura knew this about her girlfriend. She’d noticed Carmilla’s face the night when they’d first put them up. She got her contented face on, the one Laura only saw her make when she looked back at her before they kissed or when they were snuggled up on the roof looking up at the stars. 

The alarm beeped. 8:15AM. Carmilla scooted over to brush hair back from Laura’s face. 

‘We have to get up, cupcake. Spike is bringing Buffy this time. I told you didn’t I?’ she asked, nuzzling Laura’s neck. 

Laura turned over moving to lay on Carmilla’s chest. Her cheek hot against the skin there. The reassurance of her presence always helped no matter the time of day. Laura stretched. She replied, ‘You did, Carm. Cuddles first, please.’ 

Carmilla chuckled, ‘You don’t have to ask me twice, Laura.’  
She drew her arm together around her girlfriend and lightly scratched the hair at the bottom of her skull. 

It always amazed Carmilla how the body could keep so much in such a small space. It always humbled her when she woke up next to Laura. Laura still alive; human Laura who made living this undead life more palatable and so calm.  
For all the times they’d got lost when they were at Silas they found their way here, to this old apartment in Vienna together. 

Laura could not have been more excited at the prospect of meeting one of the Scooby gang. Faith and Spike were lovely. But they reminded Laura of Carm and brooding people with dark pasts she could deal with. It helped they were both secret softies also. So sweet that it made Laura feel like an actual cupcake. 

She shook her head. 

Buffy was a fighter, investigator, a fellow small blonde gal who had lived through the end of the world and Laura was rather giddy, she could relate. She’d moved to the stove and was making some pancakes. Yes. That was a thing she actually did now. Made food. There were two cups of milk ready on the side. One for her and one for Carmilla with a measure of blood beside it. 

Also a thing she was doing now. Laura had given up giving blood, at least in the traditional sense, to blood banks in that final year at Silas. Laf had taught Carmilla how to insert a canula and drain blood into a container for the moments when biting was not a green light. Laura was happy to be bitten most months, but, Carmilla was unmoving on the subject. There had to be certain conditions and sometimes she couldn’t take Laura that way. So the home blood bank method was suggested by Laf. Failing that there was always pigs blood from the Butchers on the high street five minutes away. 

The butcher thought they made a ton of black pudding. It couldn’t be further from the truth. Laura had made sure to stock up with Spike visiting as well.  
She was turning out the pancakes and squirting strawberry sauce on hers and bloody fangs on Carmilla’s when she felt a pair of familiar arms wrap around her. 

‘Mmmm,’ Carmilla purred. ‘Smells divine, Laura.’ 

‘Me or the pancakes?’ Laura laughed.

Carmilla playfully nudged her hip into Laura’s, ‘would you think I was bad if I said both?’ She grinned toothily at Laura.

Laura moved the plates to their breakfast bar.  
‘Sit down and eat, you useless vampire.’ 

Carmilla ate loudly just to mess with Laura. Laura huffed and smiled.  
‘You’re gonna be worse when Spike gets here, aren’t you ?’ 

‘Maybe,’ Carmilla said. Taking a sip of milk and waggling her eyebrows.

‘Hmpfh. At least I’ll have Buffy.’ Laura sighed 

‘Aw yeah, baby. The two tiny blondes together at last.’ Laura leaned over and moved her lips against Carmilla’s neck. In a short sharp action she nipped the skin there between her teeth then hopped down from the stool to close the blinds in the living space. 

Carmilla laughed as she put the dishes into the sink. There was a knock at the door. Laura rushed over to Carmilla who looked momentarily confused before Laura pressed a deep kiss to her lips before bounding to open the door.  
twenty-three years old and still has the excitement of a trick or treating child on Halloween.  
Then again, Carmilla thought to herself, if she was meeting Spike for the first time she’d feel the same way. 

‘Buffy! Can I hug you? Laura said excitedly

‘Sure thing, Laura.’ Laura drew buffy into a firm hug and kissed her cheek softly.

‘It’s so awesome to finally meet you in person!’

‘You too, hon,’ Buffy smiled. Reaching back to Spike’s arm she gripped it,'did you bring the gift?’ 

They moved to sit on the black leather sofas. Spike nodded then shouted, ‘Karnstein get over here.’

Carmilla walked slowly and settled next to Spike. She moved closer to him and lay her head on his shoulder.

‘Hey, Mirc.’ He said

‘Good to see you again, Willy,’she smiled breathing in his leather jacket for a moment. 

Leather had been a comfort from when she was a child to now. A moveable home for her nomadic lifestyle up to now. She nuzzled in deeper she felt as if she was in a different time. There were hints of earth, of lavender. Spike’s hand squeezed at her shoulder. ‘Hey, Mirc. You okay there?’

Carmilla could feel her throat tighten she hadn’t cries since her head had been under that sword. Since she thought she was going to see Laura for the last time.

Laura and Buffy were wrapped up in conversation about the potenials back in England and Carmilla felt safe enough to whisper to Spike.

‘Squirt, you smell like the before. My mum she used lavender from the garden as perfume. I'm back to when I was ten.' Her hand was gripping his thigh and her knuckles were white. 

‘Okay darling, what can I do to help?’

‘Rub my back for a second please. It’s what she used to do to get me to fall asleep.’

The leather of his jacket squeaked slighty. Carmilla could feel the air in the room getting lighter with each pass of his hand on her back and she could see the room go hazy and her body felt really heavy with sleep.

 

/

 

When she woke up all she could smell was washing detergent and Laura’s skin.  
She rolled over and looked at the clock. It read 15:30PM.

‘Hey there miss sleeperson. Nice to have you back.’ Laura reached out and stroked Carmilla’s hair. She put down the book in her hand and moved underneath the covers, reaching across to spoon her girlfriend. 

‘Laura, I’m sorry I fell asleep. How did I get here?’ Carmilla asked, nuzzling into arms.

‘Spike carried you in. Him and Buffy are in the spare sleeping off their jet lag. So we have some time to talk if you wanted to.’ Laura pressed a kiss to Carmilla’s neck against the spot she’d nipped at earlier in day. Carmilla sighed.

‘I want to tell you, Laura.’

‘Good. I knew something was wrong. I knew Spike was there and he’d know what to do or you’d feel okay enough to tell him because, he’s well, Spike. Apart from Rupet, he’s the only one who really knows – well and Faith and Mattie how to help you.’

Carmilla smiled. Her throat was raw from crying. But she didn’t remember crying enough to make it hurt so bad. It hadn’t been this bad since Mattie ‘died'.

‘Cupcake, my mother – my real mother she used to wear lavender perfume well used lavender from our garden to make her smell good and, Little Willy had some in his leather jacket and I had a flash to when I was ten and in the stables with my mother helping her care for some of our horses.’

Laura’s eyes were wide and bright and there were tears tracking down her cheeks. But she was silent waiting for Carmilla to finish her story. She moved her hands to pull Carmilla around so she was looking directly into her face. This was hard. It always was when the memory was this deep but she had to see her face; she had to know she wasn’t falling deeper into another pit. There had already been enough pits for one life time let alone two. 

‘It was the time when I first started liking leather. The reigns on the horses were so soft and my mother showed me how to put them on our horses. I loved the smell of stables. Earthy, hay and leather. Yes, there was a lot of shit but the stable boys dealt with that. Being a countess mother never let me near it. She was adamant that I was to learn all there was to know about horses.’

Laura reached out to touch Carmilla face. She hesitated, ‘Can I?’  
Carmilla nodded.  
She brushed her thumb over Carmilla’s cheek and used her forefinger to skate across her eyebrow. 

‘I love your eyebrows,’ Laura said, voice throaty with emotion. She leaned forward and kissed the edge of one.

Carmilla laughed softly, ‘Well, cutie. I should hope so I’ve have 300 years to perfect them.'

‘I also love your teeth and your mouth. I really love your mouth. I don’t think I tell you enough…tell about your mother?’ Laura said, sighing.

‘Laura, I’m not complaining you’re the one loving me here. Do you know how much I feel for you? Do you even have any clue? We don’t talk about it much I know. It's been a whirlwind these past few months. You’ve been so good with Spike and I know you’re so excited to meet Buffy. Sorry I conked out early. But at least they’re here for the week.’ 

‘It’s okay, Carm.’

‘What I’m trying to tell you is. In all my days, no one’s ever put me first. Mattie has her moments, 300 years worth but, I respect that she has her own battles. With you of course, it’s different. She’s my friend, my sister but, you’re my forever Laura. I, look, what I'm saying is, no one’s ever sacrificed themselves for me the way you have, Laura. No one in all the world. In all the history. Until you. Do you understand the gravity of that? How heavy you make me feel and how floaty? That all rolled into one. You gave me my heart again, Laura.’

‘Yeah.’ Laura, said. Her hands were shaking. Carmilla untangled herself and steadied them with her own. ‘Look, cupcake. I love you. We’ll get through this. You may have blood on your hands. I have centuries worth. That twat deserved so much and no one deserves anything much normally, but, he did bad things Laura. Bad things to you. To our friends. To me. Things I’d never want you to have to think about, let alone even dream about.’ 

‘I know. I couldn’t let you go again. After everything, how would I have ever forgiven myself, Carm,’ Laura burrowed herself in the crook of Carmilla’s neck and drew in a deep long breath. She kissed her way across Carmilla’s neck.

‘I like your neck, Carm. I mostly like it because it’s in one piece still. Sometimes I have nightmares where he’s there with his wrinkled angry face and your beautiful face is on a spear and he’s cackling like a demigod that he always wanted to be.’ 

‘Oh, Laura. Cupcake. You crumbled that charter between those adorable hands of yours. He’s gone forever. D.E.A.D dead. Okay and look,’ Carmilla said, flexing her fingers at the base of Laura’s head, ‘I’m here now. We’re stuck together.’

Laura laughed and snuggled into her girlfriend. Letting the scratching against her skull send her off to sleep. 

-

The wall clock in the kitchen read 19:00PM. 

They’d ordered in Pizza. 

Buffy leant across the table and presented Laura with a box.

It was small and black and had a golden cross on it.

Laura smiled wide. 

‘Buffy, you’re not getting me to join church I mean, I’m not really...religious.’

Carmilla and Spike exchanged a smirk before extending their glasses of blood and clinking them together, ‘to our ladies.’ 

Buffy rolled her eyes smiling at Laura, ‘Open it, hon. It won’t bite I promise. Also, slayer here not really into the whole crosses thing unless they’re for a weapon. No offence guys of course she said, flicking her eyes to Spike and Carmilla.

Carmilla shook her head, ‘No harm done, Buff.’ 

Laura opened the box. 

Inside was a miniature scythe pendant on a silver chain. 

She gasped, ‘Buffy, Spike, I…’

Buffy walked around the end of the table and pressed a kiss to her hairline, ‘Laura, you’re like family and anyway, nothing says girl the hell up like a symbol such as a scythe or so Willow has told me multiple times.’

Carmilla looked over at Laura laughing and squeeing and at Spike looking at Buffy and she thought this was it. This was what people meant when they said the word happy.


End file.
